1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to tracking referrals to network sites.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Certain analytics software tools (e.g., Google Analytics, Unica NetInsight, and Coremetrics SurfAid) are utilized by Internet websites that provide the ability to view trends and provide other statistical information regarding how customers access such websites (e.g., which URLs referred these customers). For example, in many web browsers, when a link is clicked, an HTTP header is sent to the website associated with the link that contains the URL of the previous page. This can be useful data for the company hosting the Internet website, since this can provide the company with additional information regarding how potential customers are linking or being referred to the website which in turn allows the company to make more intelligent decisions about marketing and ways to distribute content associated with the website.
However, the referral information can only be sent when the referring entity is another web page (i.e., the referral URL). This results in a significant gap in referral data if large percentages of users are accessing content through other channels or mechanisms (e.g. email applications, IM clients, bookmarks, etc.).